I went to Ecuador in 2001 on a two-week mission trip to Quito, Ecuador with a Christian Girls' Magazine called Brio. In a nutshell, I fell in love with the country, and left feeling like I had so much more to give.
My sophomore year of college, I had two options for the following summer: go home and work, or go somewhere and volunteer. I chose the latter. I was originally exploring going to Peru with Cross Cultural Solutions. However, a study abroad fair at Auburn University where I was attending sparked my interest. I started asking around if anyone had a volunteer program until Jacksonville University out of Florida said they did. They just so happened to have a trip to Ecuador. I just knew it was the trip I was supposed to go on!
Let me tell you, Jacksonville University has some creative writers, because they sure were excellent in candy coating what the trip would entail. The program description said I'd be teaching drama and dance to orphans, while helping them with English and school work. In reality, I was given a bed, shown a bus route, and the only volunteer in an orphanage with more needy girls that my single person could handle. Past volunteer experiences helped, but I need hands, materials, and training.
Jogar Infanto Juveniles Para Mujeres, or just Jogar Infanto, is similar to our version of foster care. These girls weren't necessarily abandoned. The government had taken them out of their homes. Their parents were abusive, drug dealers, prostitutes, criminals, etc. This wasn't an orphanage. This was the prison that captivated 64 young, innocent girls from experiencing real life.
These girls overwhelmed me. They craved my touch. They wanted to touch my hair, and rub my skin. They surrounded me, most of them, every moment I was there. Sometimes I would have to have the policeman at the door let me step outside just so I could take a moment. There was lice in their hair. They fought.
I wish more than anything that I could say I did something to make a difference in their lives. Unfortunately, I do not know. I fear I failed my mission. I returned from Ecuador with two handfuls of very hard life lessons, if not more.
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